Railway car



Au 25, 1931. c. HANKINS ET AL RAILWAY CAR 3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed.Aug. 12, 1929 Aug. 25, 1931.

RAILWAY CAR Filed Aug. 12, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IIIIIIHWE 0 O O c o o o c o o O 0 0 0 0 o o o e o o o M A5 0 /0 0 o o a; 4 E4 3 i H 33 I I Jwumtoe 6/. fizz:

c. HANKINS ET AL 20,136

Aug. 25, 1931. c. HANKINS ET AL RAILWAY CAR Filed Aug. 12, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Aug. 25, 1931 UNiTED srares PATENT ()FFICE CYRUS HAITKINS, OF WASHENGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, AND GEORGE-B. CHRIS- TIAN, OF CHEVY CHASE, MARYLAND, ASSIGNORE- T WINE RAILWAY APPLIANCE COMPANY, OF IOLEDG, 01516, A COBPORATZON OF OHIO RAILWAY CAR Application filed August 12, 1929. Serial No. 385,360.

Our invention relates to railway cars, and moreparticularly to mechamsm for supportmg the lading discharge doors of hopper cars v in closed position, and it has for its principal object to provide a mechanism for that pur-' pose which is of simple and rugged form and is easily operated.

A primary feature of the invention consists in providing, in combination with the door of a hopper car, mechanism for supporting the door in closed position involving a hook member rigidly secured to the car body and a pivoted latch mounted on the door, the hook being secured to the hopper in a plurality of intersecting planes.

A further feature of the invention resides in providing, in combination with a door adapted to close a lading discharge opening of a hopper car, a door supporting mechanism comprising a latch pivotally mounted on the door and a hook carried by the hopper,

the hook being formed with a plurality of I portions rigidly secured to'the hopper,- one of which is secured thereto in a plane substantially parallel with the plane of the lading dischar e opening.

A still further feature of the invention consists in constructing the hook of the door mechanism with a portion adapted to be secured to the side of the hopper and with a portion adapted to be secured to the end of the hopper in which the lading discharge opening is formed.

A still further feature of the invention consists in providing the hook with a shouldered portion which is disposed inwardly of the inclined side of the hopper, to which the hook is attached, for engagement with the pivoted latch mounted upon the door.

A still further feature of the invention resides in so constructing the hook that when the latch is initially brought into engagement with the ledge thereof the latch will engage the ledge for substantially its entire width.

Other and more specific features of the invention residing in advantageous forms, combinations and relations of parts, will hereinafter appear and be pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of one of the hoppers of a railway car showing mechanism involving the invention applied thereto. 7

Figure 2 is a fragmentary end elevational view of the construction illustrated in F igure 1.

Figure 3 isa fragmentary sectional View taken on line 33, Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional diagrammatic view of a railway car of the type which has been chosen for illustrating the invention.

Figure 5 is a side elevational view of the hook of the door supporting mechanism.

Figure 6-is an end view of the hook.

l igure is a sectional viewtaken on line 77, Figure 5.

Figure 8 is a plan View of the hook.

Figure 9 is a sectional View taken on'line 9----9, Figure 5.

Figure 10 is a sectional view taken on line l0--l0, Figure 5. V

Figure 11' is an end view of the bracke employed for pivotally mounting the latch on the door, the door and associated stiffening member being shown in dotted lines.

The ear illustrated in the drawings is of the well known type having hoppers ar ranged transversely of the car, but it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to cars of that particular yp Referring more particularly to the drawings, and for the moment to Figure 4 thereof, 1 indicates the side sills of the car and 2 the center sills.

The hoppers of the car, generally designated by the reference numerals 3 and f re spectively, are disposed transversely of the car on opposite sides of the center sill 2. As is usual, each of the hoppers is formed by an inclined floor or slope sheet 5, an enter inclined'sidesheet 6 having a flange underlying the slope sheet, and an inside side sheet (not shown). Positioned in the end of each of the hoppers is a door frame '5, preferably of caststeel and of trapezoidal shape to conform to the contour of the hopper.

The door frames may advantageously be formed with inwardly projecting portions or flanges 8, 9 and 10 which are respectively secured to the outer side sheets, the slope sheets and the inside side sheets of the hoppers. At their upper portions the frames are preferably secured to a sheet 11 which is connected to adjacent parts of the car construction.

The main'body portion of each door frame is formed with a substantially rectangular opening 12 through which the lading within the car is adapted to discharge. As the frame is of trapezoidal shape and the lading discharge opening of rectangular shape, it will be seen that the portion 13 of the frame between the. opening and its outer edge is of substantially triangular form.

Formed on each door frame and bordering the discharge opening are outwardly projecting flanges 14; for co-operating with flanges upon the door to form a seal against the escape of fine lading. The hinged door 15 for closing the discharge opening is of rectangular form and is provided with ini wardly extending marginal flanges 16 which not only stiffen the door but co-operate with the flanges lt of the door frame to prevent the escape of fine lading. The doors are hingedly connected to their associated frames by any suitable means, such ashinge straps 17, secured to the door which are adapted to co-operate with hinge lugs 18 which may, if desired, be formed integral with the frame;

The doors on opposite sides of the center sills of the car are connected by a spreader member 19 so as to cause them to swing as one. The member 19, in addition to servingas a door spreader, also serves to stiffen m or reinforce the doors, and for this purpose itmay advantageously be of Z shape, having oppositely projecting legs or flanges 20 and 21 and an'intermediate connecting web 22. The spreader is. mounted upon the door so that its web 22 is substantially normal to the plane thereof, while its flange 20, which contacts with the door, projects upwardly toward the hinge axis of the latter and the flange 21 projects in the opposite direction in a plane removed from the door.

The supporting mechanism for each door generally comprises a hook member 23 rigidlysecured to the hopper and a latch member 24 pivotally mounted upon the door. As

. clearly shown in Figure 4:, the latch members of the door supporting mechanisms are preferably mounted adjacent the opposite ends of the door stiffener or spreader 19. As the two door supporting mechanisms illustrated in Figure f are identical, similar reference numerals will be used to designate corresponding parts and only one of those-mechanisms will be described.

Mounted upon the stiffener is a bracket member 25 having a plurality of angularly disposed portions 26 and 27, the portion 26 being secured to the web of the stiffener by a plurality of rivets 28, while the portion 27 projects upwardly in spaced relation to the flange 20 of the stiffener. If desired, the bracket may be suitably reinforced by a plurality of flanges or gussets 29. At its end adjacent the side edge of the door the bracket is preferably formedwith an up-- upper end of the extension 30 of the. bracket,

serves as a pivotal support for a latch locking cam or dog 34:. A washer or ferrule 35 is preferably interposed between the boss32 and the outer face of the door for spacing this boss the same distance from the door as the boss 31. From the foregoing it will be perceived that the latch is pivotally interposed between the bracket 25 and the upwardly projecting flange 20 of the door stiffener and that the cam is pivotally interposed between the bracket and the outer face of the door, each of these parts being mounted so as to operate in a plane parallel with the door.

Adjacent its lower outer end the upright portion 27 of the bracket is provided with an inwardly projectinglug 53 adapied to form an abutment to limit downward rotation of the latch. After the latch has been brought into engagement with its abutment the cam 34 1s rotated lnto operative position, firmly locking the latch in door supporting position. In this manner it will be appreciated that the latch, when lockedby the cam, constitutes, in effect, a rigid extension of thedoor stiffener or spreader 19.

The hook mamb'er 23 is preferably formed with two oflset, angularly disposed portions 36 and 37. 'The portion 36 is disposed in a plane parallel with the inclined outer side sheet of the hopper and is preferably securedto the flange 8 of the door frame by a plu-' rality of rivets 38, while the portion 37,

-- shear.

ly projecting portion 37 of the hook, which is the one disposed in the vertical plane, is spaced inwardly for its major part with respect to the portion 36 thereof and the side of the car. The planes of the ofiset portions of the hook preferably intersect at a point 39 above the lower edge of the hook so that while the major part of the portion 37 thereof, which is above the point of intersection 39, is spaced inwardly from the portion 36, that part of the portion 37 of the hook below the point of intersection 39 is offset outwardly from corresponding parts of the portion 36. The lower edge of the hook adjacent the offset thereof is preferably formed with a laterally projecting reinforcing flange or gusset 40.

Y The outwardly projecting portion 3'? of the hook is preferably provided with a plurality of ledges or shoulders 41 and 42, respectively, adapted to co-operate with the pivoted latch to support the door in a p artial position of closure and in a final position of closure. These two ledges may be de. irably connected by a downwardly inclined portion 42o so that after the latch been brought into en agement with the preliminary ledge 41, downward movement thereof into engagement with the final ledge 42 will force the door into fully closed position. The lower edge of the final ledge 42 is preferably defined by a laterally projecting flange or shelf 43 which, as clearly appears in Figure 9, projects on opposite sides of the plate portion of the portion 37 of the hook. This flange or shelf extends rearwardly to the offset port-ion of the hook and continues to adjacent the inner end of the portion 36, thereby constituting a reinforcing flange or gusset connecting the two offset poi tions.

Adjacent its offset the hook is fashioned with an inwardly projecting flange or portion 44 disposed in substantially the plane of the lading discharge opening ofthe hopper. The upper end of this portion 44 is anertured to receive a rivet 45 for attaching it to the end of the hopper in the triangular portion 13 of the door frame. A triangular shaped flange or gusset 46 may conveniently be integrally formed with the portion 44 for reinforcing and connecting-it to the shelf 43 of the hook.

From the foregoing description of the hook and the manner in which it is mounted on the hopper it will be seen that it is secured to the hopper in a very rigid manner, as one of the attaching rivets, namely the one passing through the end of the hopper, is in tension, while the other attaching rivets are in It will also be seen that since the shouldered or ledged portion 37 of the hook is spaced inwardly of the outer side sheet of the hopper and immediately adjacent the adjoining side edge of the door, bending moments ordinarily induced in that portion of of, while at the lower edge of the final ledge Y 42 it merges with the shelf or flange 43. Adj acent its nose or outer end the hook is provided on its inner side with a portion 48 wlich inclines inwardly in'the direction of closing movement of the door, so that should the door shift longitudinally of its hinge axis the inclined portion will co-operate with it to properly position the door preparatory to assuming closed position. This inclined portion is preferably formed by tapering or beveling the portions of the marginal flange at the nose of the hook. Between the nose of the hook and the preliminary ledge 41 thereof the marginal flange forms an approach plane 49 upon which the latch rides or moves as the door is being moved toward closed position. The portion 49a of the approach plane immediately adjacent the ledge is so formed that it will intersect the latter in a line which is substantially parallel with the under side of the latch when the latch is in position to initially engage the ledge. In other words, the portion of the approach plane immediately adjacent the ledge is formed so that the latch contacts therewith for a distance substantially equal to the width oi": the ledge. In this manner the outer face of t 1e latch, when initially brought into door supporting engagement with the ledge, engages it for its entire width and not merely one corner thereof as would be the case should the line of intersection of the ledge and approach plane be parallel with the lower edge of the latch after the latter has been brought into complete overlapping engagement with the ledge. The inclined connecting portion 42a of the ledges also inclines in a manner similar to the transverse incline of the approach plane so that the latch, when it is initially brought into engagement with h final ledge, will also engage the latter for adistance equal to its width.

As doors of hopper cars become warped and distorted, due to the severe service conditionsto which they are subjected, it might be that sufficient leverage cannot be obtained by causing the latch to move downwardly along the inclined portion 42a of the hook to force the door to fully closed position. To take care of this condition the outer end of the hook may be conveniently formed with an aperture 50 affording a fulcrum for a pry bar or lever (not shown) which isadapted to co-operate with an adjacent portion of' h' the door whereby sufficient leverage may be obtained to force the door to fully closed position. As it is sometimes difficult to free the latch from engagement with the ledge when it is desired to open the door, the outer edge of the shelf or flange 43 may be formed with an incline 51 and the adjacent outer portion of the latch mav he beveled as at 52 so that a pry bar may be inserted between the shelf and latch to move the latter upwardly from engagement with the ledge.

From the foregoing it will be perceived that a door mechanism constructed and applied to the car in'a manner similar to that disclosed herein is of simple and rugged form, may be rigidly applied to the car and easily operated.

: Vi e claim:

1. In a railway car, the combination with ahopper having an end providd with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing the said opening, and mechanism for supporting the door in closed position involving a latch movably mounted on the door, and a hook carried by the hopper, said hook having oiiset portions respectively secured to the side and to the end of the hopper.

2. In a railway car, the combination with aiho ,per provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing the said opening, and mechanism for s porting the door in closed position involving a latch movably mounted on the door, and a hook carried by the hopper and being gidl secured to the side thereof, said hook being offset intermediate its ends and having a portion adjacent said offset for attachment to the hopper in a plane substantially parallel to the plane of the lading discharge opening.

3. In a rail. car, the combination with a hopper having lading discharge opening, a door for closing said opening, and mechanism for suppor ing the door in closed position involving a latch movably mounted on the door, and a hook rigidly attached to the side of the hopper, saic hook being provided intermediate its ends with. an inwardly projecting flange overlapping and rigidly se cured to the end of the hopper.

l. In a railway car, the combination with a hopper having an inclined side and provided with a lading discharge opening, a door for closing the opening, the side edgeof the door adjacent the inclined side of the hopper extending at an angle thereto, a hook rigidly secured to the side of the hopper and having a portion proi ecting beyond the plane of the closed door, said outwardly projecting portion lying in a plane substantially parallel with the adjacent side edge of the door, and a latch on the door engageable with the outwardly projecting portion of the hook to support the door in closed position.

,5. In a railway car, the combination with a hopper having an inclined side and provided witha lading discharge opening, of a door for closing the opening, a hook rigidly secured to the side of the hopper, said hook having a shouldered portion projecting beyond the plane of the closed door and disposed inwardly of the hopper side, and a latch movablymounted on the door engageable with the shouldered portion of the hook for supporting the door in closed position.

6. In a railway car, the combination with a hopper having an inclined side and provided. with a lading discharge opening, a door for the opening, the side edge'of the door adjacent the inclined side of the hopper extending at an angle thereto, a hook rigidly secured to the side of the hopper and having a shouldered portion projecting beyond the plane of the closed door, said shouldered portion being disposed in the angle formed by the side of the hopper and the adjacent side edge of the door, and a latch movably mounted on the door engageable with the shouldered portion of the hook for supporting the door in closed position.

7. In a railway car, the combination with a hopper having an end provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing the opening, a hook rigidly secured to the side of the hopper and having a shouldered portion projecting beyond the plane of the closed door, the inner end of said shouldered portion overlapping and abutting the said end of the hopper, and a latch movably mounted on the door engageable with the shouldered portion of the hook to support the door in closed position.

8. In a railway car. the combination with a hopper having an inclined side and provided with a lading discharge opening, of a hinged door for closing the opening, a hook having a plurality of offset portions, one of said portions being provided with a shoulder and the other being secured to the inclined side of the hopper, said shouldered portion being disposed inwardly of the hopper side and arranged in a plane substantially normal to the hinge axis of the door, and a latch mounted on the door engageable with the said shoulder'of thehook to support the door in closed position. 7

9. In a railway car, the combination with a hopper having an inclined side and provided vith an end having a lading discharge opening, of a hinged door for closing the opening, a hook having a plurality of angularly disposed offset portions, one of said portions being provided with a shoulder and the other being secured to the inclined side of the hopper, said offset portions being connected by a portion secured to the said end of the hopper, and a latch movably mounted on the door engageable with the shoulder of the hook to support the door in closed position.

10. i In a railway car, the combination with a hopper having an inclined side and provided with an end having a lading discharge opening, of a hinged door for closing the opening, the edge of the door ad acent the inclined side of the hopper forming an angle therewith, a hook having a portion secured to the said side of the hopper and a shouldered portion projecting beyond the plane of the closed door and disposed in a plane parallel with the adjacent side edge of the door, the said portions of the hook being connected by a portion secured to the said end of the hopper, and a latch movably mounted on the door engageable with the shouldered portion of the hook to support the door in closed position.

11. In a railway car having a hopper provided with an inclined side sheet, of a door frame having a body portion provided with a lading discharge opening and a flange secured to the side sheet of the hopper, a hinged door for closing the said opening, a hook having portions rigidly secured to the said flange and body portion of the door frame, and a latch mounted on the door cooperable with the hook for supporting the door in closed position.

12. In a railway car having a hopper provided with an inclined side sheet, of a door frame having'a body portion provided with t lading discharge opening and a flange secured to the side sheet of the hopper, a hinged door for closing the said opening, a hook having angularly disposed portions respectively overlapping and rigidly secured to the said 1 flange and body portion of the door frame,

and a latch movably mounted on the door, the said hook being also provided with a ledge cooperable with the latch to support the door in closed position.

13. In a railway car having a hopper provided with an inclined side sheet, of a door frame having a substantially rectangular lading discharge opening and an inwardly projecting flange secured to the inclined side :heet of the hopper, the portion of the frame between the said flange and said opening be ing of substantially triangular form, a hinged door for closing the discharge opening, and mechanism for supporting the door in closed position involving a latch movably mounted on the door, and a hook secured to the said flange and triangular portion of the door frame and having a shouldered portion lying in a plane substantially parallel with the adjacent edge of the discharge opening in the frame.

14. In a railway car having a hopper provided with an inclined side sheet, of a door frame having a substantially rectangular ".ading discharge opening and an inwardly projecting flange secured to the inclined side sheet of the hopper, the portion of the frame between the said flange and said opening being of substantially triangular form, a hinged door for closing the discharge openwith the shoulder of the hookto support the door in closed position.

15. A door supporting mechanism for a railway car involving a hook member adapted to be rigidly secured to the car body, said hook member having a ledge and an approach plane leading thereto, and a latch adapted to be pivotally secured to the car door for cooperating with the ledge of the hook to support the door in closed position, the approach plane of the hook immediately adjacent the ledge thereof being formed so that the latch I contacts therewith for a distance substantially equal to the width of the ledge.

16. A door supporting mechanism for a railway car involving a hook adapted to be secured to the car body, said hook having a ledge and an approach plane leading thereto, and a latch adapted to be pivotally connected to the car door for cooperating with the ledge of the hook to support the door in closed position, the surface of the approach plane of the hook immediately adjacent the ledge thereof conforming to the cooperating underside of the latch so as to have line contact therewith transversely of the hook.

17 A door supporting mechanism for railway cars involving a hook adapted to be rigidly secured to the car body, said hook having a ledge and an approach plane leading thereto, and a latch adapted to be pivotally attached to the door for cooperating with the ledge of the hook to support the door in closed position, the said ledge and approach plane of the hook intersecting in a line substantially parallel with the underside of the latch when the latch is in position to initially engage the ledge.

18. A door supporting mechanism for railway cars involving a hook adapted to be rigidly secured to the car body and a latch adapted to be pivotally attached to the car door for cooperating with the hook to support thedoor in closed position, the inner surface of the hook adjacent the outer end thereof being inclined inwardly in the direction of closing movement of the door, said inclined portion being adapted to cooperate with the door to properly position it preparatory to assuming closed position.

19. In a railway car, the combination with a hopper having an end provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing the opening. a hook having a plurality of offset portions, one of said portions bein secured to a side of the hopper the other of said portions project-ing beyond the end of the hopper, said portions being connected by a portion rigidly secured to the end of the hopper in a plane parallel with the lading discharge opening and by an out-. wardly projecting flange disposed in a plane normal to the plane of the discharge opening. In testimony whereof We afiix our signatures.

CYRUS HANKINS.-

,1! GEORGE B. CHRISTIAN. 

